


Memories of the Red Fields

by dornishsphinx



Series: Avatar!verse [1]
Category: Persona 2
Genre: Alternate Universe - Avatar & Benders Setting, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-07
Updated: 2018-04-07
Packaged: 2019-04-19 12:27:46
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 963
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14237304
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dornishsphinx/pseuds/dornishsphinx
Summary: After Jun is finally convinced of the truth and rejoins the group, he and Tatsuya wander off alone together for the first time in years.





	Memories of the Red Fields

 

“What’s this?”

“It’s a panda lily. One of the acolytes from the Earth Kingdom told me about them. They’re extraordinarily rare, apparently, and only grow on the very edge of active volcanoes. It seemed appropriate.”

“You always did love flowers.”

“You remembered?” Jun asked, a small giggle hidden away behind his hand.

“How could I forget? Do you remember when you dragged me out to the Red Fields?” He paused a moment, to see if there was indeed a moment of recognition. Jun’s face flickered, but he didn’t respond; Tatsuya continued, not quite knowing why it was so important that Jun hadn’t forgotten: “It took us the whole morning to get there and we were exhausted when we finally reached home. But you were insistent on seeing the wild fire lilies before their season ended.“

"We—we went via Sunbaked Stone, did we not? You decided to go barefoot over it and convinced me to do the same.”

Tatsuya felt himself blush.

“It’s all right,” said Jun, with his little half-smile. “I know you did genuinely forget not everyone can regulate their foot temperature. And I forgave you when you insisted on carrying me the rest of the way. It was very gallant. Even if it meant the journey took twice as long. And it was so late when we—”

He frowned, considering. "It… it was late when we actually got there, wasn’t it?”

Tatsuya nodded. Jun looked relieved.

“Well, maybe that was for the best. Do you remember the red of the evening sun sinking over the fields? It was like everything was ablaze. And the fire lilies were twice the size of the potted ones in the city, if not triple. I can almost still smell them. Then it got dark, of course, and we couldn’t find our way home. Everyone was so worried. Maya led the search party, since she could follow the light of the moon easier than everyone else. She still had that smile of hers plastered on to keep up morale; I didn’t even realise she was scared.”

“She just about iced my feet when she healed them up,” said Tatsuya, when Jun lapsed into silence.

“Mine too.” Jun laughed again, a high, light sound. “I suppose this makes it the second time I’ve dragged you off to look at some pretty flowers. How did you put up with me? Though to be fair, the first time I really did need to go. Fire lilies only bloom a few weeks a year. I needed to see them before…”

Jun trailed off.

He’d known. Since that day, probably since before that day, he’d known he was going to leave. Tatsuya chastised himself for being surprised. The mass airbending revival had happened months before that day. Yet it still hurt more than he’d expected.

“I couldn’t keep Father in the dark,” said Jun, like he could hear his thoughts just as well as Tatsuya himself; maybe even better, “He loved the Air Nomads: he went to the Boiling Rock for his writings on their culture. It would have been better if he was the one who got—”

He faltered, before letting a tiny wisp of wind whirl around his empty palm.

“Well. This.” He snapped his fist closed. “He’d have appreciated it so much more than me. I was selfish.”

Tatsuya remained quiet; an easy enough thing after years of silence. But Jun still looked at him, his one visible eye glistening but resolute.

“I just. I never wanted to have to choose. Between the dream everyone thought Father was crazy for dreaming—the revitalisation of an entire culture—a destiny the spirits themselves seemed to have laid out for me; between all that and you.”

Tatsuya felt himself freeze, like one of the evil waterbenders from all those childhood stories had stopped his blood from flowing.

“I knew the right choice. But I was weak. You all were my only real friends. The first ones I’d ever had. I couldn’t let go, so I just didn’t let myself think about it. I was going to tell you all, I swear. Before I told Father. I knew he’d want to leave immediately for the Western Air Temple. But then—”

He broke off then, abrupt, his face contorting into a painful snarl Tatsuya immediately felt the urge to smooth out, to bring back the reminiscent smile that had been there not seconds before.

“I’m an idiot. A weak, selfish idiot. How can you stand to be around me?”

Jun looked down at the panda lily cradled in his right hand; his fingers tautened, curling over it like a spider-cat engulfing prey. Tatsuya felt the space between them slowly grow, though they were both stone-still, as though Sudo’s son were there, ripping them apart with that horrific mad glee he’d never be able to unsee—

He pushed in closer, imaginary ghosts be damned.

“You’re not an idiot, Jun. Or weak or selfish.”

Jun’s smile returned, though a hollower version. He wiped his eyes before any tears could fall.

“If you think that, you must despise me for what I’ve done. The things I believed about you—how could I have ever thought about you like that? You, of all people. I had no right.”

“I might have done the same things in your position.”

“You don’t have to lie to make me feel better.”

“I’m not.”

He laid a hand over Jun’s tense fist where the panda lily still lay, then said, as near to gentle as he could manage: “I thought you said these were rare. You shouldn’t go about crushing them.”

Jun looked at him. Tatsuya looked back, unflinching, until he felt Jun’s fist relax.

“You’re far too forgiving.”

“I can hold a grudge. This just doesn’t merit one.”

**Author's Note:**

> This is a little part of a larger Avatar!AU universe I've been working on (encompassing all the Persona games) but since I already published this snippet over on tumblr, I decided it worked well enough on its own to put here.


End file.
